Original subtitles

♪ Way back when in 1863

♪ Now part of the American lore

♪ A young family must leave their home

♪ Because of the Civil War

♪ Livin' their lives in a brand new town

♪ Doin' the best they can

♪ The Little Women are on their own

♪ Lookin' to make a stand

♪ Fortunes of war can't change the way

♪ We imagine our lives will be

♪ The March family are on their way

♪ Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy

I've got a cold.

This was quite a troublesome time

for the March family.

Not only was Marmee still away in Washington

nursing father back to good health,

but also some of us at home

weren't feeling very well either.

Say Beth, is there somethin' wrong with your appetite?

I'm a bit tired is all.

You're quite pale, I hope you're not ill.

Maybe I am sick.

I believe it.

You've been eatin' like a tiny bird lately.

Hi, sleepyhead.

Aunt March is going to have

to do without me today.

What's the matter?

I feel like I'm coming down with a cold.

Beth isn't feeling well either.

Could it be the flu?

It might be.

I have no appetite and I tire easily.

No Beth, that doesn't sound like...

Jo!

Oh my, please excuse me.

Milky Ann sneezes like that.

Maybe that's so, but I've got a bigger appetite, don't I?

That's right.

Won't Aunt March be upset with you

if you don't go over there today?

Actually, she'll be more upset

if I do show up this afternoon.

Oh please, you two haven't been arguing again?

Not really.

She just looked at me and said, "Josephine,

"are you catching a cold?"

"Nothing to worry about," I replied.

"Just a bad cough."

Then what?

Well, in a very gruff voice she made it clear

that she didn't want me around her coughing and sneezing.

Then I had to vow I wouldn't return until I was well.

So, that's that.

What will you do all day?

Maybe begin writing my masterpiece.

Maybe I'll get sick, too.

You're a silly goose, Amy.

It makes more sense to be envious

of the lucky people who stay well.

Aren't I right?

Yes.

Meg, can we talk?

Sure, Beth.

Do you think you might be going near

the Hummels' house later on today?

The Hummels?

Mm-hm.

I stopped by their home yesterday

to pay them a friendly visit but Mrs. Hummel was gone

to work and Lotte was taking care

of one of their little babies who was very sick.

There's got to be something we can do to help them.

Might you find some time this afternoon

to stop by and just look in on them, Meg?

Today I won't have an extra minute.

No, I can't fit it in.

Josephine?

What about this cold?

Beth, I'm sorry.

Tell you what, I promise I'll see the Hummels tomorrow.

Before she left, Marmee was very concerned

about their well-being.

Mm-hm.

I'll be glad to stop by to see them

just as soon as my cold gets better.

I'll visit them now.

Thanks, but you have school.

Yes, Amy.

Hadn't you best be on your way?

Oh dear, I'm late!

See ya!

- Bye-bye. - So long.

Well, she's certainly got a lot of energy

this morning, doesn't she?

And Amy's not the only one that might be late this morning.

Now, you two take care of yourselves today.

We'll be fine.

Don't worry about a thing, Meg.

All right. Bye now!

You want some oatmeal, Miss Jo?

Yes, Hannah. Mm-mm.

As Meg left the house to face another busy day,

she wasn't aware that our friend Laurie

was watching from his home nextdoor.

There's Meg.

I wonder where Jo is.

This basket sure ain't a lot,

but I imagine they'll appreciate it.

I know they will.

Thank you, Hannah.

How you feelin', Beth?

I'll be fine.

You'll try to come back home early, now won't ya?

Yes.

Let's pray the Hummels' baby will get well very soon.

Beth!

Where's Jo?

Oh, hi, Laurie.

She didn't come with me. Why?

I was wondering because I haven't seen her

go outside lately.

She'll be staying inside for a day or two.

Why?

She's not feeling well.

Come in.

Huh?

Hm.

No fever, nice clear voice,

and wonderful reflexes.

I beg your pardon.

I'm sorry if I startled you a little bit.

Apology accepted.

Hm, Great Expectations by Dickens.

Any good?

Yes, now what do you want?

Oh nothing, actually.

Just being neighborly.

When I found out you were a bit under the weather

I decided to come over and pay you a visit.

And how, might I ask, did you find out

I wasn't feeling well?

Oh, Beth told me.

Yes, my little sister isn't feeling well herself.

Yet she went out, I just saw her.

The Hummels.

I bet she went there after all.

The Hummels.

Oh, do I know them?

Of course.

You remember I told you about the family

with the tiny children whose mother is working

while the father is at war.

Ah, wasn't your mother helping them out

by keeping an eye on the children?

Mm-hm, and Marmee's asked us to look out for them

while she's gone, but Beth is the only one of us

who seems to find time.

She's ever so unselfish.

Beth even went out in this cold all bundled up.

She mentioned that that baby was very sick.

Hm.

What took place inside the Hummels'

simple little house that day was an occurrence

so disturbing that Beth knew she'd never be able

to forget it as long as she'd live.

Sometimes the world can be a lonely and confusing place

for a little girl and there are often

many more questions than there can possibly be answers.

Today was such a day and Beth didn't know what to do

nor where to turn.

Beth ran all the way back home

knowing that she'd have to tell everyone

what had happened that afternoon at the Hummels',

but Beth didn't know if she could ever find the words.

This would be remembered as a dreadfully sad time

for all of us.

Hello there, Miss Beth.

Huh?

Hm.

Sure hope everything's all right.

You're fortunate your cold hasn't gotten any worse, Jo.

That's because I stayed at home

and took proper care of myself.

Yes, ma'am.

It's best to always keep yourself inside

and try to stay warm when you feel a cold comin' on.

Don't forget, my coming over

and paying you a friendly visit

has probably helped you a little bit.

I won't forget because the first time

I came nextdoor you had the cold

and I did all the cheering up.

I suppose that makes us even.

Yes, I remember that.

Do you want me to take some

of this nice, warm cocoa upstairs to Miss Beth?

What?

Has Beth just come home?

Yes ma'am and if you ask me she looked upset.

Hannah, would you tell her that Jo

would like her to come downstairs?

Yes'm.

On second thought, I'd better go upstairs

and see her myself.

Bye.

Hm?

Excuse me, I, uh...

Hannah said she was in here.

Hm.

This is very strange.

What?

There you are, Beth.

What are you doing up here in Marmee's room?

No, please don't come any closer, Jo!

What's going on, Beth?

Why would you be looking for medicine?

I believe that Meg's been treated

for scarlet fever, hasn't she?

Yes, we've both had it a couple years ago.

Why, Beth?

The Hummel child's dead.

Beth, please, that can't be!

Yes, while Mrs. Hummel was out getting the doctor

the baby died in my lap.

I came back here as fast as I could.

My, how very sad.

And poor Beth.

This must have been dreadful for you.

I'm ever so sorry.

Oh Beth, I should've gone instead of you.

It wasn't dreadful, Jo, although it was very sad.

He was just a child.

When I arrived this morning Mrs. Hummel

had already gone out to get the doctor.

Lotte was there alone holding the baby

and she seemed afraid.

And the baby looked asleep.

I took the little one and held it close to me

and then he gave the softest little sound

and closed his eyes and then he smiled at me

for the last time.

I'm right here with you.

Go ahead, Beth.

And then Mrs. Hummel came back with the doctor.

He said that there was simply nothing he could do,

that the poor baby was dead and it was scarlet fever.

Beth, Mrs. Hummel shouldn't have waited so long

before she called the doctor.

It's not that she didn't know any better, Jo,

but she just didn't have the money to pay him.

The doctor was ever so compassionate

and promised he'd come back

and treat the other children for free.

He told me to come home and get a lot of rest

and be sure to take a medicine called belladonna right away

because I could possibly come down

with scarlet fever.

I'm sorry, Beth.

And if you did get that terrible disease,

I could never forgive myself.

Laurie, Hannah.

Jo, what is it?

Oh Laurie, I'm mortally afraid.

You must call a doctor right away.

Calm down, Jo, what's wrong?

It's possible that Beth may have scarlet fever!

Please, what can I do to help?

Just be with Beth for now, Hannah.

Yes'm.

I'll see if she needs anything, Miss Jo.

That poor child.

I think Dr. Banks should examine Beth

as soon as possible.

What? Oh yes.

I'll fetch him right away.

Laurie, wait, please!

Yes, Jo, what do you want?

I'd appreciate it ever so much

if you had someone else at home go get the doctor.

I want you to come back here and be with me right now.

But first I need to know something.

Laurie, I must know if you've ever had scarlet fever.

Yes, Jo.

Both Meg and I have, too, but not Amy

and she may come down with it if she remains with Beth,

so for the time being would you please distract her?

Sure, Jo.

We must take precautions even though Beth

may turn out to be just fine.

Yes, you're right.

This is absolutely no time to take anything for granted.

Now don't worry, I'll be right back.

And please hurry, Laurie.

Amy's due home from school at any moment.

Mm-hm, just as fast as I can.

Oh, I'm so very grateful.

Hey, I'm just glad I could help.

Bye.

Miss Jo!

Huh?

Yes, Hannah, tell me.

How is she?

That poor child's burnin' up with a fever.

Well, do you believe it's serious?

Hannah, is she in danger?

Yes, Miss Jo.

I was right, then.

Yes'm.

It's the scarlet fever.

Oh, poor Beth.

Although she often helped our family see the way,

for once Jo felt completely helpless.

Oh how I wish that Marmee were here at a time like this.

Huh?

I can still remember wishing with all my might

that the stranger's carriage would stop at our house

because one of the things I most enjoyed

about being in Newcord was meeting people.

And when I saw the gentleman go inside

I was especially glad because I'd gotten home

from school just in time to visit with someone new.

Little did I know that this was not a social call

and that there were sad times ahead for the March family.

- Amy. - Huh?

Oh, hello.

Say, Laurie, do you know whose carriage that is outside?

It belongs to Dr. Banks.

Does this mean that Jo's flu has gotten much worse today?

Amy, Jo feels fine.

I'm glad, but why's the doctor here?

I'm afraid it's Beth, Amy.

Well then I better go see what's the matter.

No! Come back!

Oh! Huh?

You shouldn't go near her at all.

I wanna go see Beth.

No, Amy, that's not possible.

Oh yeah, why not?

- Very well, then. - Hey!

Josephine, I'll be checking with you

tomorrow morning. - Jo!

Laurie won't let me go upstairs.

Hello there, Amy.

Laurie, I'm afraid we were right.

Beth does have scarlet fever.

Oh no.

I should be allowed to see Beth.

If Marmee were here she'd want me to go upstairs, too.

Scarlet fever can be caught by being in the same house.

Am I right, doctor?

Very true.

And for that reason it's most important

that Beth should have no visitors at all

until the danger has passed.

Brrr.

Doctor, is the illness grave enough

that I should contact my mother?

What do you mean?

You see, my mother's already very concerned

about my father's condition and I definitely

don't want to worry Marmee nor alarm her prematurely.

Well, it's still much too early to predict

with any certainty, but her condition

may not turn out to be very serious.

What a relief.

I'm glad.

Hold on now, I didn't promise you anything, Josephine.

Yes, sir.

And it's imperative that you keep

your youngest sister away.

I understand.

Mm, try not to worry, Jo,

and I'll check on Beth again tomorrow afternoon.

Thank you for coming.

Just as the doctor had aroused my curiosities

when I returned from school, as Meg headed home

she was most surprised to see Dr. Banks at our house, too.

And it disturbed her extremely.

Meg!

I'm so glad you're home.

Something terrible's happened.

What is it?

Hi, Meg. Was I asleep?

Mm-hm.

I wanted to surprise you and come home early today

and I thought we might walk over to the Hummels' together.

Meg.

Hold my hand.

Oh.

Are you mad at me for being so busy

that I had to make time

to look in on the Hummels? - No.

I'm sorry. Beth.

No!

I am not moving to Aunt March's place

and that's all I have to say!

How can I make you listen to me?

I'm gonna stay here!

I don't want you to send me off by myself.

Stay here with Beth and you'll probably come down

with scarlet fever!

That's fine with me!

Don't be so stubborn, Amy.

Scarlet fever is a very serious matter!

It's best I remain here.

Beth needs me.

Yes, she's my sister, too,

and I'm no less concerned than you are.

Oh, Amy.

Now listen to me, please.

I only want what's best for all of us

and while it's true you might not

come down with scarlet fever,

Marmee wouldn't want us to take that risk.

You see, I'm positive that Marmee would want me

to send you off to Aunt March's, just for a little while.

Sure, you'll have a lot of fun.

You don't wanna take the chance

of catching that nasty old scarlet fever, do you?

So please cooperate.

I'll tell ya what, Amy.

Why don't the two of us make a deal?

You promise to go to Aunt March's place

for a few weeks or so and I promise

that I'll visit you every day.

We'll have a jolly old time.

Now, I don't want you going out of your way.

Don't be silly, Jo.

I'll come by here every day to check on Beth's progress,

and then I'll go see Amy and let her know

how everything's going.

While I'm there maybe we can take a ride in my carriage

or have a nice picnic near the lake, just the two of us.

How does that sound?

Really?

Would you come every day?

Mm, you have my word on it.

But Beth and I have been spending

a whole lot of time together lately.

I might already be sick.

Yes, that's possible, but Dr. Banks mentioned

we won't know for certain for some time.

Okay.

- So, what'll it be then? - Good.

Do we have a deal or not?

Yes.

Okay, I'll go upstairs now and pack your bags.

Everything is going to work out just fine.

Aunt March, here we come.

So once the decision had been made,

we were heading toward my temporary new home

in no time at all.

I couldn't even go upstairs to say farewell to Beth,

which made me feel ever so badly.

But Jo vowed to give her my love and best wishes

for the speediest of recoveries.

While I won't say I was exactly looking forward

to my stay with Aunt March,

I'd resolved to make the very best

of our difficult situation.

Hello, Aunt March?

Well, look who's here.

I guess you've decided to show up after all.

Auntie's in a most disagreeable mood.

Well, I've been feeling under the weather

and it would never do to give Auntie my cold, now would it?

Who knows, maybe she's angry at me.

Well, well, well.

So, what's all the luggage for?

Amy's going to be staying here for a little while.

How about that.

Oh please, for once in your life be nice.

But I am.

As a matter of fact, I'm usually told I'm wonderful.

Since when does your mirror talk?

All right, be that way.

Go away, leave me alone!

Go away, leave me alone!

Bock! Bock!

Yes, of course, my dear,

and I shall be happy to take care of Amy.

I was sure you'd help us out.

I'm sure we shall get along famously.

You'll mind your matters now, won't you little one?

Unh-huh.

Amy dear, I want you to feel free

to make yourself at home.

Yes, ma'am.

Thank you.

Josephine, I don't imagine

we'll be seeing you here for quite a while.

No, I'm afraid not, Aunt March.

For the time being Beth will be needing me at home.

And of course your mother

will be returning.

Well, Father is still quite ill

and Marmee is already dreadfully worried.

So I've decided that for the time being

it's best that Mother doesn't know

what's happening here at home.

Perhaps you're right, Josephine.

Poor dear, the strain may be too much for her.

Get up there, boy.

Oh! Ah!

Bye!

Tell Beth I love her very much!

See ya!

I sure hope Beth gets over her scarlet fever real soon.

I want her to be well and I wanna go back home.

Won't you come in, Mr. Laurence.

I'm glad you could come.

Beth's condition hadn't gotten any better

and everybody back home was most distressed.

Oh, sir.

Mr. Laurence couldn't bear to see Beth

suffer so, but he was helpless to ease her discomfort.

We all were.

That was what was so perfectly maddening.

There was nothing to be done now but pray

and hope for the best, that the fever might break

and Beth would be well once again.

I ought not to complain, but goodness knows

a few weeks could turn out to be

an everlasting time to be away from my family.

Being a little girl in a grown up world

can be awfully confusing and sometimes patience

and understanding don't come easily.

♪ Fortunes of war can change the way

♪ We imagine our lives will be

♪ The March family are on their way

♪ Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy